A woman is under police investigation after a video began circulating online that shows her climbing on top of a dolphin stranded in shallow water.

The incident occurred on July 19, 2022, near the Dutch town of Zandvoort, west of Amsterdam on July 19, 2022.

Footage shows the topless woman approaching the dolphin as the crowd cheers. But when she reaches the stranded animal and tries to mount it, the tone changes from cheers to boos.

Photo: Twitter/@mycupsofcoffee

The woman continued trying to ride the stressed dolphin until men walked out and got her off of it.

According to RTL Nieuws, police opened an investigation after reviewing the video and the woman involved ended up turning herself in.

Photo: Twitter/@mycupsofcoffee

Speaking with RTL Nieuws, Annemarie van den Berg with SOS Dolfijn said it was "very disturbing" to watch the video and see what the long-beaked dolphin had to endure. Not only was the dolphin put under the stress and risk of being in shallow water away from its proper habitat, but it also had to deal with human interference.

Berg went on to explain:

"If [long-beaked dolphins] end up in the North Sea, they get into trouble. These animals do not survive well in these types of waters. They look for food at a depth of two to three kilometres.

If [they get stranded], they are doomed. Our goal is to have the animals turn around so that they swim out of the North Sea on their own."

Photo: Twitter/@mycupsofcoffee

Understandably, people were outraged by the woman's actions. In fact, the public reaction was so strong that the police issued a statement, warning people not to make threats against the woman.

As the Belgium Posts English outlet reported, the police said: "We understand that this story evokes emotions. That should never be a reason to make threats on social media. This is also punishable. Therefore do not do this."

https://twitter.com/Mycupsofcoffee/status/1550221727745150979

Swimming with dolphins is a popular tourist activity, but it's usually conducted in a controlled environment with trained dolphins under the supervision of marine wildlife experts. Even so, it's quite controversial and has been labeled as exploitative by many animal rights groups, like the Humane Society and World Animal Protection.

If you see a dolphin in the wild, you should never approach it or touch it. If you suspect a dolphin is stranded and in need of assistance, the best thing to do is call the authorities so properly trained staff can assist the animal and ensure no one gets hurt.